An unholy horde of rockstars and zombies descended upon London’s Troxy this evening for the worlds most rock n roll award show. Hosted by the undisputed king of partying Andrew W.K and legendary Skindred star Benji Webb; the packed house of bonafide rock gods were out in force amongst ghoulish revellers for a night of the undead debauchery.
Kerrang! Magazine Editor James McMahon said: "What a night! You know why Kerrang! continues to grow well into our thirtieth year? Because we are the anti-boring. The anti-conservative. The anti-bland. At what other music awards ceremony would you find Marilyn Manson being attacked by a zombie or Alice Cooper being taught card tricks by Dynamo? Tonight was the pages of Kerrang! made flesh. A celebration of amazing music, lust for life, noise, community and fun. Does anyone have any aspirin?"
Maryland poppunkers All Time Low cemented their place as modern rock heroes with two awards. Coming up against bonafide legends AC/DC and pop-punk veterans Fall Out Boy to take home Best International Band. They also won the hotly contested Best Event Award, shared with You Me At Six for their co-headline tour.
The rifftastic Royal Blood, undoubtedly the break through band of the year, were honoured with the Best British Newcomer award. The Brighton duo who scored the highest selling rock debut album for three years, have been championed by Kerrang! From the start.
It was a transatlantic showdown for Best Album with British newcomers Marmozets taking the gong in a real David vs Goliath victory. They successfully saw off US giants Black Veil Brides and ex My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way. Kerrang! has championed the Yorkshire alt-rockers since day one, and last year Marmozets scored an impressive Top 40 position with their debut album ‘The Weird And Wonderful Marmozets’.
Another UK success came from Enter Shikari who took Best Single with their protest song ‘The Anaesthetist’ airing their views about protecting the NHS. The electro-rockers came out on top from competition from Fall Out Boy, All Time Low, and even UK metal-core favourites Bring Me The Horizon. ‘Steel cities finest’ Bring Me The Horizon didn’t leave empty handed however, as they were victorious in taking home Best British Band. The Sheffield metallers stunned the world last year with their sold-out Wembley performance, finally elevating the band to the level that they deserve as Britain’s flagship modern metal outfit. Muse, You Me At Six and Architects were also nominated.
‘Anti-christ superstar’ Maryiln Manson surprised the audience picking up his Lifetime Achievement in person. The controversial shock-rock star who rose to fame in the nineties, has been a prominent symbol of counter-culture, sparking debates about censorship and has topped the charts on a multitude of occasions. The ‘Beautiful People’ star released his new album ‘The Pale Emporer’ in Jan 2015.
Heavy metal pioneers Judas Priest were out in force collecting their Inspiration Award. The metal legends hailing from Birmingham, led the charge of the new wave of British heavy metal in the eighties and are considered by many to be one of the best heavy metal bands of all time. The rock royalty didn’t stop there though, as the ‘Godfather of shock rock’ Alice Cooper picked up his Kerrang! Legend Award.
Hollywood’s glam-metallers Black Veil Brides felt right at home next to the legends, who they’ve been inspired by, snatching Best Live Band from under Slipknot’s and Architects’ noses. In another American win, Best International Newcomer went to PVRIS (pronounced ‘Paris’) from Boston Massachusetts. Led by the enigmatic and charming Lyndsey Gunnulfsen.
Sticking true to the metal theme Best Video went to New Years Day for their darkly cinematic ‘Angel Eyes’, with it’s macabre mask-party theme and splendidly gruesome special effects. Baby Metal the worlds best and most fun Japanese teenage idol metal band (yes, you read that correctly) took the The Spirit Of Independence Award. The band have been smashing perceptions of metal around the globe, bringing their impressive stage show and proving that they are anything but a fad.
The Relentless Award went to Rolo Tomassi. The math-rock act from Sheffield fronted by Eva Spence have toured the world and consistently released new and challenging music for the better part of a decade. They are an act that truly represents Relentless’ here to be heard attitude within music.
Slaves picked up the gong for The Spirit Of Punk Award. The two-piece have seen exponential growth in 2015, and have been unrelenting in unleasing their raw sound on the public – even appearing on the likes of Later with Jools Holland.
Presenters on the night included: Duff McKagen, Dynamo, The Darkness, Don Broco, Rolo Tomassi, Dani Filth and Bullet For My Valentine.
A further eight awards were revealed on the night, though not presented in the room:
· Best Fanbase – Pierce The Veil
· Best Film – Guardians Of The Galaxy
· Best TV Show – Adventure Time
· Best Radio Show – Nights With Alice Cooper – Planet Rock
· Best Video Game – The Walking Dead
· Best Comic Book – The Walking Dead
· Best Festival – Slam Dunk
· Best Comedian – Russell Howard
· Tweeter Of The Year – Hayley Williams
Relentless Kerrang! Awards – Full Winners List
1. BEST EVENT
Winner - All Time Low
2. BEST BRITISH NEWCOMER
Winner - Royal Blood
3. BEST INTERNATIONAL NEWCOMER
Winner - PVRIS
4. BEST SINGLE
Winner - Enter Shikari with ‘Anaesthetist’
5. SPIRIT OF INDEPENDENCE
Winner – Baby Metal
6. INSPIRATION
Winner – Judas Priest
7. BEST ALBUM
Winner – Marmozets with ‘The Weird And Wonderful Marmozets’
8. BEST VIDEO
Winner – New Years Day
9. KERRANG! LEGEND
Winner – Alice Cooper
10. THE RELENTLESS AWARD
Winner – Rolo Tomassi
11. BEST LIVE BAND
Winner – Black Veil Bride
12. BEST INTERNATIONAL BAND
Winner – All Time Low
13. BEST BRITISH BAND
Winner – Bring Me The Horizon
14. LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT
Winner – Marilyn Manson
15. SPIRIT OF PUNK
Winner – Slaves
16. BEST FANBASE
Winner – Pierce The Veil
17. BEST FILM
Winner – Guardians Of The Galaxy
18. BEST TV SHOW
Winner – Adventure Time
19. BEST RADIO SHOW
Winner – Nights With Alice Cooper – Planet Rock
20. BEST VIDEO GAME
Winner – The Walking Dead
21. BEST COMIC BOOK
Winner – The Walking Dead
22. BEST FESTIVAL
Winner – Slam Dun
23. BEST COMEDIAN
Winner – Russell Howard
24. TWEETER OF THE YEAR
Winner – Hayley Williams
www.kerrang.com
